Having lived in this neighbourhood for so many years now, I thought it might be appropriate to share this little piece – in case you were planning a day in and around Dubai Marina with kids. Get the kids outdoors – take the metro, tram, and water taxi around the marina. Bring their scooters and bicycles!
There are a few options on how to spend a day here using the public transport :
You can either :
- Start your day at the Spinneys End of the marina, and take the water taxi from there to Dubai Marina Mall (2 hours free parking with a validated parking ticket) or
- Start your day at Dubai Marina Mall (3 hours free parking) OR Address Dubai Marina (comp all day valet, if you dine in one of their restaurants) and take the water taxi from there to Marina Walk, or if you are there in the evenings – to Bluewaters
Here’s a ‘sample programme 🙂
Start off at the Spinneys End of the marina
Get there by Public Transport – Metro & Tram
If you are taking public transport, get off at Sobha Realty Metro Station. Get onto the tram, and go towards the ‘Al Sufouh’ direction, and get off at Marina Towers tram stop. From there, walk down towards the Marina Walk.
You can also just walk straight from the Metro Stop towards the Marina Walk towards this end, if the weather permits.
Check the Metro and Tram timetable on RTA’s website.
Where to park, if you are driving
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If you’re coming by car, you can also park underneath the Emaar 6 buildings. Click here for the GPS location – it will take you down to where the fountains are. Parking is free for 2 hours, if you buy anything from the shops, and paid parking after.
Tip : If you are planning to spend an entire day in the Marina and don’t want to end up spending a fortune on parking – I would suggest you either take public transport or – start the morning with breakfast or lunch in one of the hotels – that way you get comp valet for the entire day.
There’s Westin , Le Meridien and W Mina Seyahi down this end. Dubai Marriott Harbour Hotel & Suites is here as well.
You could also start the journey in the Dubai Marina Mall itself, or Address Dubai Marina – and come down to this end on a water taxi.
Let the kids play in the fountains
If the weather is okay – hang around the fountains. It’s a really nice spot for the kids.
Have a coffee at Starbucks, a bite at Cafe Bateel. There’s also Marks and Spencer Cafe if you want to have a bite, and of course – Spinneys for picking up extra snacks.
Take the water taxi, towards Dubai Marina Mall.
There is a ‘Marina Walk Marine Transport Station 1‘ stop outside Spinneys.
It costs you, and kids from ages 5 onwards, 5 AED from this stop to Dubai Marina Mall. If you’ve never been on a boat within the marina waterways, it’s quite a nice and inexpensive way to see the Marina through here. Sometimes it’s the Traditional Abra, and most of the time it will be an Air-conditioned Abra. Scooters and Prams are allowed on the Abra, Bicycles are not.
Check the Water Taxi Timetable here on RTA’s website.
If you wanted to do a tour with Yellow Boats instead, book here.
Spend sometime in Dubai Marina Mall , The Address Dubai Marina or Pier 7
The water taxi will stop outside Dubai Marina Mall and it’s a quick walk inside. Spend sometime here – shopping, food.
The Address Dubai Marina is connected to the Marina Mall on the 1st floor of the mall – so if you want to go there for a bite, do that as well. Pier 7 is located here, and is also connected via the Marina Mall via a walkway.
Have a browse through my reviews of The Address Marina.
Take the water taxi, towards Bluewaters
By late afternoon, take the water taxi towards Bluewaters – this costs 5 AED as well per adult, and for all kids ages 5 and above. Again, it’s a nice way to see the rest of the Marina and you follow the waterways out towards Bluewaters.
As of May 2022, the water taxi leaving Dubai Marina Mall to Bluewaters starts at 4:50pm on Weekdays, and 4:10pm on Weekends. Check RTA’s website for the current timetable.
Check the Water Taxi Timetable here on RTA’s website.
Spend sometime in Bluewaters
There are lots of restaurants here in Bluewaters.
There’s of course Ain Dubai, Tr88house, and the boardwalk itself for lots of scootering for the little ones.
Have a browse through my reviews of Restaurants in Bluewaters.
Going home
You can take the same route back.
Tip : If one member of the family did not want to do all that – they can park at Bluewaters and meet you guys there.
Cross the bridge towards JBR
If you still have energy, carry on the journey by crossing over the Bluewaters Bridge towards JBR.
From here, you can carry on exploring the area. The entire beachfront are luxury resorts such as Address Beach Resort, Doubletree by Hilton, Sheraton JBR, Hilton JBR and more.
There are also lots of restaurants along ‘The Beach’ – and an outdoor playground for kids to play, if the weather is nice.
Take the tram, back to Spinneys End of the Marina
If you started your journey at the Spinneys End, you can take the tram back easily from here. The closest tram stop from that end of JBR is JBR2 Tram Stop. Jump on, and make sure you go towards ‘Marina Towers’ station.
Enjoy our beautiful neighbourhood ! ;)
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